This was a lighthearted, charming read. Augusta Stern was a teenager living over her father's pharmacy in 1920s. She wanted to help people like her father did - dispensing medicines to ease their problems. When her great-aunt moved in to help out, Augusta discovered a new way to help others. Meanwhile she fell in love with the delivery boy, Irving. Fast-forward to 1987, when newly retired Augusta discovers Irving is living in the retirement community that she just moved into. Since Augusta hadn't seen Irving since he broke her heart 60 years ago, she's not entirely thrilled to see him! This book is filled with hopes and dreams and lots of misunderstandings. This is the second novel I've read by Lynda Cohen Loigman and I'm hoping for a 3rd! Both books have strong female characters, stories told in 2 different time periods, and a touch of magic. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy in return for my honest review.

Cute book! Story was a bit predictable. Enjoyed the dual timelines.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I really liked the plot i thought it was so fresh. i think i have a soft spot for senior MCs and the concept of how long and deep our lives really are so this book got me

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern
Author: Lynda Cohen Loigman
Source: NetGalley
Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2024

Mazol Tov to Lynda Cohen Loigman with her upcoming release of The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern. This book is like a big slice of Chocolate Babka with tea in a cozy kitchen—charming, mystical, magical, loving, and hopeful. In the Stern family, the death of their mother renders her two daughters and husband wallowing in grief until the arrival of Aunt Esther. Augusta’s father is a pharmacist, but her aunt is a healer with resources her nephew doesn’t have to cure the heart. But having a healer’s gift can be a blessing and a curse. You have to be very careful how you use your “gift.” Augusta spends her life growing old in the pharmacy but without Irving, the love of her life...the one who got away. Fast forward to her 80th birthday, and Augusta has time to reflect on her past. The reminiscing that comes with her newly retired life in Florida sets up the entire life-affirming story. I LOVED THIS NOVEL. I love spending time in the Jewish faith. I love the traditions and the kindness of this family. Not all detours are wrong turns; sometimes, they are simple delays in your future. It is never too late to start again. Love is magic.

#historicalfiction #Jewish #magicalrealism #healers #women #life #love #family #future #mistakes #WomensFiction #faith #romance #spells #TheLoveElixirOfAugustaStern #Goldie @lloigman @stmartinspress @netgalley #chickensoup

I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. Thank you to the publisher, Netgalley, and the author for the opportunity to read this novel. Pub. Date: October 8, 2024.

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Forged partly of her father’s career as a pharmacist and then by her great Aunt Esther who came from the old country and had herbalist magic, Augusta is a contrary octogenarian who’s a recent transplant from her entire life in New York to Florida, after being forced into retirement, where she meets up with a former love interest.

Let me not go on with the plot because if you’re reading this you’re interested in actually reading the book instead of reading spoilers in my reviews (as a media consumer I despise spoilers), but instead let me tell you how much I came to care for and adore Augusta Stern as a character (and Aunt Esther ❤️).

The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern made me laugh in memory along with making me tear up. This was a beautiful, touching story and I’m so very thankful I had the opportunity to read an early copy of it.

I believe that Lynda Cohen Loigman has a magic touch herself, because everything she writes that I read I fall in love with - it’s all so rich and vibrant as the East coast of my infancy and childhood mid 70’s, 80’s, and into the early 90’s. I’m wholly under the spell of her writing now and she will be an auto-read author for me, moving forward 📖😍

This was pure magic and it’s an absolute recommendation.



Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the DRC

This was a refreshing, fun, charming story. I have believed for a long time the the necessity of east and west medicine. I highly recommend this book to all.

This was nice easy read that left you feeling good at the end. And sometimes that is all you need. I enjoyed the story both from the past and the present. Goldie was a great character and carried the story along nicely.

4.5 / 5.0 stars

What an absolutely charming story! There's history, family dynamics, clash of the old world and the new, magical realism and a touch of romance. What more could one ask for?

Across dual time lines, (1920s Brooklyn and 1980s southern Florida), we follow the life of Augusta Stern. In her very early years she and her family are dealt a difficult blow. Her father, the neighborhood pharmacist, struggles to manage work and the family. Soon, his mother's sister Esther, joins them and manages their home. But Esther is old world and dad is of the new. There's so much for Augusta to learn and so many decisions to make as she plans her life's journey. Can old and new world ways peacefully cohabit? Add to that a young struggling Irving, who is Augusta's dearest friend and perhaps even a bit more. That is until he abandons her. Sixty years later, all the youthful angst and hurt resurfaces. But can all be made well? Perhaps anything can be fixed with a bowl of hot chicken soup. Please pass me a spoon.

Ms. Loigman has done a spectacular job of providing a beautiful story with a lot of heart. The writing is solid; the characters are well-developed; the dialogue fun and at times amusing; the old world ways are mysterious and magical; and the story just warms one's heart. Are you looking for a charming feel good story? Then this may just be the perfect book for you.

I am grateful to to St. Martin's Press for having provided a complimentary uncorrected digital galley of this book through NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.



Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: October 8, 2024
No. of pages:‎ 320
ISBN:‎ 978-1250278104

Charming story of a "lady pharmacist" Augusta Stern. The dual timelines from the 1920s and 1987 work well together, blending the story of her lost youth and reclaimed love. From New York to Florida, Loigman introduces readers to the lower East side 1920s Jewish gangsters during prohibition. At the retirement community in Boca, the ladies play Mahjong poolside but things stay complicated and romance reigns, even for those in their 80s.

I always have Lynda Cohen Loigman books preordered! The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern was beautiful. Dual timeline done perfectly. Love and hope and maybe a little bit of magic made this book unputdownable. People tease me because I give a lot of 5 stars, but I read books that bring me joy. Books that make me laugh and cry. I don’t have time for anything less and so I just don’t finish the ones I don’t love! I promise you want to add this one to your list!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

The Love Elixir Of Augusta Stern

The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern is a joy of a read: it’s whimsical, magical and heartwarming. I fell in love with Augusta Stern who is almost 80 years old and it's the first time I’ve read a novel with an elderly main character. Cohen has painted a wonderful character in Augusta who strives to be a pharmacist while growing up in the 1920’s and influenced by her Aunts homeopathic cures. I enjoyed reading Augusta’s reflections on her lost love to Irving and the mystery that surrounds why he left her 60 years previously. This is a funny, sentimental portrayal of the regrets we have in life. Such a gem of a novel. Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher for the ARC of this book

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC of ‘The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern.” To say I loved this story is an understatement. This is my favorite read of 2024. It has honestly been awhile since I read anything in the romance genre, but since this involved a little bit of magic, I couldn’t resist. And can I just say it wasn’t cheesy witchy rom-com it was the perfect mix of real world pharmacology and apothecary magic. I feel like I can always spot a twist coming, but as I read I was surprised by every reveal of Augusta’s life. I felt like the switch between the 80s and the 20s of Augusta’s life was done to perfect. Just an overall beautiful book. If you’re in the market to read something to let you escape from reality and feel warm and fuzzy pick this one up!

This is a wonderful engrossing novel. Augusta has lost her Mother and her father owns a pharmacy. She is eager to learn all about the science of pharmacology. Her father's Aunt Esther comes to stay and with her brings the magic of herbal medicine with her . Augusta marvels at her cures . Full of wonderful characters and delicious food this story takes place between two timelines Augusta as she is growing up and her retirement to Florida. You will fall in love with the characters and surroundings

The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern is another 5 star read from author Lynda Cohen Loigman. I have read both The Two Family House and The Matchmaker’s Gift by this author. I loved them both, but this may be my favorite book of hers that I’ve read so far! The duel timelines were well done. I enjoyed getting to know the character of Augusta as a teenager and as an older adult in the late stages of life. This book is about love, loss, family, & everyday life, with a little bit of magic thrown in. I definitely recommend this book! It’s a wonderful read.

This dual timeline story of Augusta is heart-wrenching and a second chance at love. This reader was engrossed from start to finish about Augusta's childhood, the loss of her mother, her relationship with her aunt, learning pharmacy all the while with a crush on a boy. After retirement and a move, she sees her crush and has a chance to make things right. Beautiful and touching story. Thank you, NetGalley, and the publisher for the ARC.

This is a whimsical story of long lost love, second chances, friendship and family traditions for healing and cooking all with a Jewish twist!
Augusta Stern, recently retired moves to FL and is horrified to face a long lost love at her new retirement community. The story goes back and forth into the past and we learn how a love potion gone wrong has disastrous consequences for the future.
This was an adorable story and I thoroughly enjoyed it!
Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received a copy from NetGalley agreeing to do a review. I found the book a fast read due to the fact the author alternated chapters from present to past and I always wanted to discover what came next in the previous chapter. This is Augusta’s story, don’t call her Goldie. She just turned eighty (so have I) retired and moved to a retirement community (so have I) where she comes in contact with her one and only love of her life, who dumped her(so did mine). The present chapters detail this reconnection, while the past chapters detail their beginnings and introduce us to her family, especially her Great Aunt Ester, I can still smell her special chicken soup. Her father is a pharmacist but occasionally his pills don’t work but Aunt Ester’s chicken soup and herbs do. Loved this book but now I keep waiting for my first love to reappear problem is I don’t have a niece Jackie, read the book. “Tiny green specks sparkled like flakes of glitter in a snow globe” a sample of the author’s great writing, find it, it’s in the book.

I really wanted to love this book. It has all the elements of stories I tend to adore... time swaps, witchy magic, strong female protagonists, and respect for aging and mortality.

But mid-way through, I realized I was immensely bored by the nonstop, tedious exposition of ALL characters (I think just about every single action anyone ever did was described by a comment from character vs. crafted by the author). There wasn't a single likeable male in the entire story which would be fine if we weren't also supposed to believe that Augusta spent her entire life staying by the side of her father and pining after the first (unworthy) man she fell in love with.

Esther was the shining star of this story but we never really got the backstory on her and it's the narrative I wanted more than any other. The entire core plot of Irving having disappeared without explanation due to getting mixed up in a mafia wife's manipulative plan asks too much of the reader - it requires you to suspend belief while also holding some sort of warped sense of romanticism about the choice by squinting hard enough to see it as self-sacrificing for the sake of love.

Each time I read a story by Lynda Cohen Loigman, I am transported back to my childhood in New York with parents who grew up in Brooklyn during the 1920’s and 30’s. My childhood years included much time spent at my maternal grandmother’s in the Flatbush neighborhood of that borough and with all the references of Flatbush, Brownsville (my father’s neighborhood), Pitkin, Sutter and Pennsylvania Avenues and Thomas Jefferson High School (I still have my father’s high school yearbook from 1938), I literally went back in time. DID I LOVE THIS BOOK? YOU BET I DID, just as I’ve loved everything written by Ms. Loigman!

This is the story of Augusta Stern who grew up watching her father, a pharmacist, prepare remedies for the neighborhood families. After the death of Augusta’s mother, Aunt Esther came to live with the Sterns to help with the children and keep the household running. But Aunt Esther, who hailed from Russia, brought with her her own magic of potions and lotions so between her father and aunt, it was no surprise when Augusta announced that she too wanted to be a pharmacist.

A novel rich in Jewish culture and mysticism, this is a beautiful and tender story of family, friendship, romance, aging and never giving up on your dreams. There’s a little bit of something for those that enjoy multi genres including historical fiction, romance, family themes and a bit of magical realism.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and of course Lynda Loigman for the experience of reading this beautiful story which took me down memory lane, in exchange for my honest review.
Publication date: October 8

Probably a 3-1/2 star book. A sweet senior love story with a bit of homepathic love potion magic. Think "A Man Called Ove" meets rom-com. Certainly very enjoyable, not a must-read but some sad, funny, surprising twists and turns.